Chapter 91: Top-tier technical skill with benefits, second-rate scoring treatment...
The order of appearance at the World Championships is also determined by a draw, but it is related to world rankings. Yang Yiyan missed most of the season, and her original points could not be compared with those of veterans like Claire who have been competing for many years. She did not make it into the last group and played second in the second-to-last group.
Zhang Meng was in the group in front of her. Perhaps the Chinese team's luck was all used up in the referee's draw. This player had a rare bad draw and got to go first.
After the ice dance competition ended, the ice-clearing machine started working, and the ice fans in the stands were also busy, tearing down all the support banners and replacing them with banners for the women's singles skaters who were about to take the ice.
I glanced at the Chinese skaters in the stands and noticed that most of the skaters supported by the fans had similar skin tones to them. For example, the white skaters were mostly popular European and American skaters, probably wealthy female fans who followed the skaters' schedules to watch the games.
Over 90% of the people with yellow skin in the venue were local ice hockey fans. Looking around, they were all holding banners supporting Yang Yiyan and Zhang Mengyi, as well as bright red flags.
Despite the arguments among the ice skating fans on the forum, they were still very united when it came to this moment. However, since they were all warming up backstage, they were completely unaware of the scene inside the venue. It wasn't until the foreign coach came to pick up Zhang Mengyi that Yang Yiyan felt like she was back on the competition rink.
During the six-minute practice session, accompanied by the announcement, the penultimate group of skaters took to the ice. In addition to the skating fans, many coaches also focused their attention on Yang Yiyan.
They saw the returning skater first crouch down, touch the ice, and then perform a 3lo adaptation, clean, crisp, and beautifully executed, making skaters feel as if they had almost returned to her junior years.
Zhang Mengyi, who had already finished her match, walked towards the Chinese section of the stands with half a bottle of water in her hand. She had just been signing autographs for fans backstage and hadn't noticed the jump. Hearing the conversations nearby, she subconsciously looked up at the ice rink.
Of the six contestants on the field, only Yang Yiyan was wearing a black couture gown, which was dazzlingly dark under the lights. When she looked up, she saw this person doing a 3S+3lo+3lo. Her lips twitched, and she couldn't help but shout in her heart, "Can this girl take it easy?"
Xia Yuezi was surrounded by many foreign coaches, and various foreign languages were murmured together. She could only make out a few words here and there.
Two Finnish coaches, about three steps away from her, were discussing Yang Yiyan's current jumping ability.
The sixth practice session focused almost entirely on jumps that the athletes were not performing steadily. Yang Yiyan barely attempted any advanced triple jumps, which only indicates that she has not yet fully recovered. However, the height and distance of these jumps were quite good, and they also showed more power compared to before.
They really weren't sure if this was a smokescreen thrown out by the Chinese or if Yang Yiyan had genuinely not regained her former form.
Xia Yuezi, who had listened to the whole thing, had a complicated expression. She thought to herself that she didn't seem like a cunning old fox to the outside world, so why did these Europeans always have such wild imaginations?
However, once on the ice, no matter how much the coach tries to figure things out, it's useless; everything depends on the athlete's own skill and luck.
Xia Yuezi and Meng Xin both raised their fists towards their children, and Yang Yiyan made the same gesture, striking back at them from above. Afterwards, Xia Yuezi silently turned Yang Yiyan towards the audience and pushed her onto the ice rink.
"Go ahead, treat this as your first match."
When the symphony of "Black Swan" resounded across the ice rink once more, the swan princess, a blend of purity and wildness, vividly appeared before everyone's eyes.
Taking advantage of Yang Yiyan's rest, Xia Yuezi asked Teacher Mi to rearrange the program. She not only changed the jumping techniques, but also added some hand movements to the footwork and spins to match the movie plot.
She stepped into a forward squat turn in rhythm, slowly bringing her hands into the space between her body and thighs, then spreading them wide when she stood up. Her steps didn't stop, like a black swan with its wings fully spread, pouncing towards people—crazy and eye-catching enough.
Many figure skating fans have a feeling that this program is different from its first appearance, not just in terms of choreography, but also in terms of emotional tension.
If in the last program, Yang Yiyan simply saw herself as the actress in the play, resonating with her through her own experiences, and seeing herself as that black swan.
In this episode, Yang Yiyan skipped the middle part and went straight to becoming the Black Swan, which was a kind of madness that came from the very core of her being.
She is no longer the performer of the story, but the story itself.
The program is structured as 2A, 3LZ, and the second half consists of 3LO+3LO.
She used a raised hand gesture during her consecutive jumps, a smooth and pleasing movement. After finishing, she glided out in a wide arc, gently swaying her head counterclockwise. The camera followed her trajectory and captured a nonchalant yet intriguing curve on her face.
It's like performing a brilliant show as an uninvited guest, then casually revealing yourself to the public, flirting and proudly displaying yourself.
See? I'm no worse than anyone else.
No matter what I've been through, I will always belong to this arena, and no matter how difficult it is, I will definitely come back.
Zhao Shuhua held her pen and gave the jump 2 points. It wasn't that she was biased towards her own athlete, but rather that the jump deserved the score.
"Very good."
The two coaches standing on the sidelines couldn't help but cheer, and Xia Yuezi raised the knife sheath in her hand and waved it like a glow stick.
Meng Xin's heart finally settled down: "I thought this girl would be overwhelmed by the pressure, but I didn't expect her to withstand it."
When Liu Lian came out, there were quite a few spectators holding up banners supporting Yang Yiyan. As soon as the commentator announced her name, cheers came from all directions. The home team player's presence was immediately on full display. This was both a deterrent to other players and a pressure on their own players.
Xia Yuezi glanced at her, her voice tinged with nostalgia: "This girl has always had a good ability to withstand pressure, even since the youth group. After competing for so long, there's no reason for her to give up."
The girl on the ice completed her final pose on the last beat of the music, her arms outstretched, her upper body slightly leaning back, her head held high, accepting everyone's praise at that moment.
After a brief silence, a deafening roar of cheers erupted in the stadium as countless plush toys were thrown onto the ice rink.
Yang Yiyan was panting, sweat dripping from her forehead. She slowly withdrew from her position, looked around at the venue that was now buzzing with excitement because of her, and her smile became even brighter.
The next skater had already taken to the ice, and Yang Yiyan couldn't stay long. She picked up the few coummies closest to her and skated back to her coach.
Even before she returned, the two coaches had already estimated her score.
The judges scoring this time are not the kind of people with bad records. There is even one of our own people mixed in. The GOE and P scores should not be too harsh. As for the technical scores, Mr. Thomas is in charge. The other two technical judges are from Poland and Kazakhstan respectively.
While the Kazakhstani referee wasn't as good as Thomas, he wasn't as incompetent as the European and American referees; he was just average. But the Polish referee was a pest that Asian figure skating fans had cursed countless times on forums.
Nanako Shirai narrowly missed the gold medal, prompting the Japan Skating Association to file a complaint with the International Skating Union, resulting in a four-year ban from competition. She was only recently released.
However, the final decision of the technical judges was always based on majority rule, and Xia Yuezi was still quite reassured about the symbols that shouldn't appear on the sub-table.
Zhang Meng sat in the audience, also calculating scores with her partners: "If the numbers on the real-time scoreboard match up, with a P score of 29, we should be able to get around 66."
Yan Rui craned his neck and asked, "A P score of 29 seems low to me. At this year's World Junior Championships, Carolina's program component score was over 28. Her program was not as good as my senior's."
Karolina is this year's World Junior Women's Singles champion and currently Russia's top young female player. Her program content is unmatched by most people.
Zhang Mengyi awkwardly touched her nose and explained, "For the show 'Little Wild Goose,' this score is a bit low, but for our nationality, we're already pretty good to receive this treatment."
Based on the current treatment system, Asian female figure skaters who have some influence with the judges either need to score over 200 points or have a triple Ace. Otherwise, they don't even take the top female skater from a small Asian figure skating country seriously.
Even with such high requirements, it's just an entry ticket for Asian women's singles. There are still different levels among them. And now, the new Asian number one, Yumikawa Ria, only hovers at the first-tier level in terms of P-rank, and that's only because the Japanese investors have poured money into it.
As for their country's top skater, she has always had top-level technical difficulty but received second-rate scoring and treatment. She can barely reach the top tier if she is given more leeway. It is only because of the International Skating Union's consideration for her current commercial value and market share.
Zhang Meng looked at the still naive and clueless Yan Rui and didn't dare to tell her that even during her best period, her short program score never exceeded 30.
Just then, a sudden broadcast saved Zhang Mengyi, and everyone looked at the large screen on the ice.
With a technical score of 37.69 and a program content score of 30.68, the total score of 68.37 places it in first place.
Qiao Wen spoke up at the right moment: "This score is acceptable, although I think it could have been 69."
Ice dance athletes' training usually revolves around expressiveness and footwork; in other words, their ability to appreciate a program is usually accurate.
Within the assigned zones, the three were fairly satisfied with the result.
Meng Xin counted on her fingers and explained to her: "Once your treatment is raised, it won't drop, so the referee didn't suppress you at this time. In addition, your 3lo+3lo jumps were excellent, and your height and distance have improved. Your hang time in 2A is very strong, so the goe is probably higher."
Yang Yiyan listened silently, nodding in agreement as she left. Xia Yuezi looked at the referee's table and felt that although it wasn't the best time to say this, she still had to remind her.
"It's good that the judges are fair in their scoring, but this benefit doesn't just belong to you; it belongs to all the players with clean technique, so you can't let your guard down beforehand."
In the women's singles, there are quite a few players with rough technique in pursuit of difficulty, but there are still factions among the judges, so they still have to be on high alert.
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